Musical instrument.



F. X. AUDET.

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 21, 1905. RENEWED JAN. 13, 1909.

Patented Aug. 10, 1909.

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FRANK X. AUDET, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IrIUSICl-LL ZNSTRUIXEENT.

Application filed June 21, 1995, Serial No. 266,243.

invented certain new anu userul improvements in irdSlGn-l instruinents and i do hereby declare the following .r' to $16 furl, clear, and enact description of e anie.

present invention relates to musical r unents more particularly to stringed instruments of the harp or Zither we present invention are to e truction and arrangement various pr of this class of instrumen ts and particularly the arrangement of the strings so as to simplify the e.:ecution of musical compositions and to increase the scope or range of the instrlnnents Without uniiluly increasing ifieirsize or adding to the number of strings.

Zithers are nee commonly constructed with melody section and an accornp anirnent section com rising several distinct groups of strings, each group oi strings being tuned to i'orni a chord. This errinigenient oi the strings of the acconipaniincnit section in chord groups permits the use oi but a cone paratively fen." chords even in the largest instruments, and the necessary duplication of the strings in the different chord groups adds to the cost of the instrument and increases the distance through which. the hand must move in passing from one chord to another.

in accordance with the principal feature of the present invention. all or a portion of the chord strings of the accompaniment section arranged in single group and are tuned in two series of iitths, the strings of one series of iitths alternating with the strings of the other series. This arrangement of the chord strings permits the strings of each chord to be brought into close proximity to each other, permits the same string to be used in ioriieing a part of two or more chords, permits the connnon chords ofeach key to be arranged on the instrument in the same relative positions to each other, and brings the chords of each key adjacent to the key having an add' onal sharp or flat. The arrangement oi the chord strings in two series the co Specification of Letters Zatent.

Patented Aug. 10, 1909.

Renewed January 18, 1909. Serial No. 472,129.

of fifths with the strings of one series alternating With the strings of the other series is believed. to be broadly new and any instrument having chord strings so arranged is considered to be within the broad scope of the invention. in order to bring the strings belonging to a chord into close pro"- u ity to each other the strings are preferably arranged so that each string is next to a string which forms part of a common chord the J hand in the preferred for-n1 of the in? ntion the strin ;s are so arranged that any t iree successive strings i'orni a common chord. in the embodiment of the invention hereinafter spe ci'iically described, the chord strings are tuned in two series of iii'ths and the strings are so arranged that the interval between the successive strings is alternately a inaj or and a minor third. This arrangement of the chord strings brings them into the closest possible role ifll, enahles the chords of the various keys to be played in a simple manner and gives a large number of chords with comparatively few strings.

The present invention also contemplates the provision of bass strings tuned to the fundamental notes of certain of the chords. ihese bass strings maybe arranged in any suitable or convenient nienner upon the instrument, but are preferably so arranged that each string is adjacent to the chord strings which are tuned to harmonize therewith.

Another feature of the present invention contemplates arranging the chord and bass strings in intersecting planes so that the two sets of strings cross each other.

Ems arrangeinent ol' the chord. and. bass strings on ables the chord strings to be played at one portion of the 'istruinent Without danger of striking the bass strings, enables the bass strings to be played at another portion of the instrument Without danger of stilling the chord strings, and also enables the chord and bass strings to be played siinultancously at the point Where they cross. merit of the chord and bass strings in intersecting planes so that the two sets of strings cross each other is believed to be new and is considered to constitute a feature oi the invention Whether or nottho chord strings are tuned in two sets of iiiths with, the strings of one alternating vith the strings of the other set. it is also believed to be new to arrange the strings of a musical instrument in different planes with a string The arrangein one plane tuned to harmonize with the string in the other plane to which it is adjacent so that at one point on the instrument strings in both planes can be played conveniently to produce chords and at other points the st ings in one plane can be played independently. Such an arrangement is therefore considered to constitute a feature of the present invention. still further decrease the liability of a bass string being strucl: simultaneously with the chord strings, the bass and chord strings are so arranged that they cross the line of intersection of the planes at dill rent angles. i his arrangement of the strings allows the bass and chord strings to be properly spaced where they cross each other and at the same time brings the bass strings at their ends more nearly above or below the adjacent chord strings.

In the instrument hereinafter specifically described the chord and bass strings are supported in intersecting planes by means of two bridges each of which is provided with up )er and lower string supports, the chord strings passing over the upper support and the bass strings over the lower support or one bridge, and the bass strings passing over the upper support and tne chord strings over the lower support of the other bridge.

The melody section of the instrument hereinafter specifically described is provided with a set of strings tuned to the natural notes oi the scale and with a set of strings tuned to sharps and flats. These two sets of strings are arranged in intersecting planes and are supported by bricges similar to those which support the chord and bass strings. The two sets of strings are also ar ranged to cross the line of intersection cl the planes at different angles in the same manner as the bass and chord strings, in order to permit either a natural or a sharp or fiat string to be struclr without liability of striking the adjacent string.

'lhe various features of the present invention will be clearly understood from inspection ol' the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a plan View of a zither embodying the same i its preferred form. Fig. 2 is a View in side elevation of the instrument illustrated in Fig. 1 with the lower end of the casing broken away and with the upper string supporting bridge shown in section, and Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating the arrangement of the chord strings of the accompaniment section of the instrument.

The construction of the instrument will be apparent to those skilled in the art from an inspection of Figs. 1 and 2 in which a represents the soundingboard, l) the usual hand rest, 0 the tuning pins for the strings, (Z a bridge for supporting the strings of both the melody and accompaniment sections at the chord strings passing over the wire h of s bridge 6 and wire g of bridge (Z, the natural strings of the melody section with the exception of the st ing marked 0 passing over re wire of the bridge (5 and wire it of bridge f,

and the sharp and fiat strings of the melody section assing over the wire 7L of bridge (1 and wire j of bridge f. The bass and chord strings thus supports 1 above the sounding-hoard 0. in intersecting planes and cross each other about midway of their length, this arrangement of the chord and bass strings permitting the h ss strings to he struck alone at the upper portion of the instrument, the chord strings to be struck alone at the lower portion of the instrument, and the chord and bass strings to he struck simutaneously the center of the instrument. natural strings of the meloi'ly section and the sharp and flat strings are also arranged in intersecting planes and cross each oher so that the strings can be placed nearer ogether than would be the case if they were arranged in the same plane, and either a natural string or a sharp or flat string can be struck without danger of striking the adjacent string. in order to still further decrease the liahility of a bass string being struck simultaneously with the chord strings or a natural string being strucl; simultaneously with a sharp or flat string the bass strings as viewed in l, are arranged obliquely with relation to the chord strings, and the sharp and ilat strings are arranged obliquely with relation to the natural strings. The arrangement of the strings be defined by stating that the two sets of strings in each section of the instrument cross the line of intersection of the planes in which. the strings lie at different angles. will be apparent from an inspection of i, this arrangement of the strings permits the strings to he properly spaced at the points where t ey cross each other and brings one set of strings at their upper and lower ends more nearly above or below the other set strings.

The arrangeme t of the strings on the instrument is indicated by the letters and numerals which appear in. F 1 upon the sounding-board beneath the strings. of the melody section are tuned to the notes of the full chromatic scale, the strings being arranged in regular order. In Fig. 1 the strings which are tuned to the natural notes of the scale are indicated by letters and nu- The strings nierals, While the letters and numerals for indicating the sharp and flat strings are omitted.

The chord strings of the accompaniment 1 section, indicated by the light lines in Fig. 'l

are arranged to give all the common chords in all the keys and are tuned in two series of fifths with the strings of one series of fifths alternating with the strings of tne other ries. In 1 the notes to which the of one series of fifths tuned 1 by the upper row of letters bencatl strings and the notes to which the other 1, the chord strings give all the chords in id the keys both ma or ind minor. he

strl'igs, as indicated by the letters ling-hoard beneath these strin l to he fund-a nontal hasses o iOfdS nd are arranged ad acent to herd strings forming those majo cf hass s ring at the center of "l being located hetweerthe strings of its major chord.

The relation of the chord strings to eacii other and the relative position of the common chords in each key will be more clearly understood from an inspection of in this figure the letters indicating the notes to which the chord strings are tuned are ranged in the order indicated in l with an additional note at each end to con ete the cycle, the additionano being ates of the notes to which the outside strings of the accompaniment section, illustrated in 1, are tuned, these additional strings heing omitted from the instrument illustrated in Fig. 1 to avoid irultiplic ttiou of the strings. 11 the arrangenent of the chord strings in t o series of fifths i'h "he strings of one .lternating with tl strings of the other series is such that the 'nterval between successive strings is alternately a minor third or a major sixth a n aj sixth, giving all r third or a minor chordsin all the keys by the use of twentystrings, the additional strings at eacl l, in heated in Fig. 8 by the l fiat, :eing unnecessary to pro cle of c iords, and being added to th merely for the sake of olearness. noted that any common chord can he duced by striking three successive strings so that all the chords can be played in prccisely the same Way and in the simplest manner possible. It will also be seen that tonic clv rd of each major key is located l e hand is moved in precisely g from one chord to Key. The tonic 'ey is neat-ed between expeto another I curring is to a key 1 nal sha p or flat. The

c nia'or keys have the same no ins .rument "with relation to herds of each hey are containi' chords of a1 position on each other,

rose pro innty to eacn o her.

l 1 chords oi i, e

,. chords of the chords of the rein the tonic the LlO111li arp, i) sharp, i3 )OStiOl). on the us 3 their tonic arrangement of chord strings, as inl in Fig. 3, hrings the strings into the closest possible relation and ives the greatpossihle nurnher with the east number of strings. in a ition to the advantages 1 s t forth, this arrangement o: s ther advantage that the strings which are tuned to t tl-irds of the major chonls may he tuir 'l nearly it not exactly true. It is a 'vrn fact that on the piano and all ne its with nxod notes, with the he douhlo actionharp, the third chord, o the qual temperaoi tn s one-seventh of a tn the arrangement cated in Fig. 3 the series nod to the thiri'is of the tuned nearer true with 1 dii'l'eren is greatly apiltivatcd ear.

of the present invenindicated, and a preferred on specific- -i seri hav mg a plural- :eries ol hiths with 1e uhdominant and the dominant trings has the furwith the strings of the other series, and arranged with each string neXt to a string forming part of a common chord therewith.

3. A. musical instrument, having, in comliination, four or more strings arranged a ljacent to each other and tuned to intervals of alternate major and minor thirds whereby any three successive strings may he sounded to form a chorrl.

l. A musical instrument, having, in combination, two sets of strings located in intersecting planes and crossing the line of intersection of the planes, the strings of the two sets being arranged at different angles to the line of intersection of the planes.

5. A musical instrument, having a plural ity of strings tuned in two series of fifths with the strings of one series fifths alternating with the strings of the other series, and strin s of lower pitch located arlj acent to said first mentioned strings and tuned to harmonize therewith.

6. A musical instrument, having, in comlination, a group of melody strings and a group of chord strings, the chord strings being tuned successively to alternate intervals of major and minor thirds whereby any three successive strings produce a chord.

7. A musical instrument having, in comhination, strings tuned to the intervals of harmonic chords arrangei'l in a plane and strin s tuned to harmonize therewith ar ranged in a rlill'erent plane with each string adjacent a string in the other plane with which it is tuned to harmonize.

8. A musical instrument having, in comhination, strings locaterl in different planes with each string of one plane tuneil to harmonize with the string of the other plane a ljacent thereto.

9. A musical instrument having, in com hination, strings located in intersecting planes and crossing at the line of intersection of the planes with each string of one plane tuned to harmonize with the string of the other plane adjacent thereto.

10. A musical instrument having, in comhination, a plurality oi strings tuned to the intervals of a harmonic chord. and a string tuned to harmonize therewith arranged adj acent thereto in a diff rent plane.

In testimony whereof I ailix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

FRED O. Frsn, FARNUM F. DORSEY. 

